


Fact and Fiction

by ammstar11



Category: Percy Jackson and the Olympians - Rick Riordan
Genre: AU, Alternate Universe - College/University, Alternate Universe - Vampire, M/M, Vampires, Werewolves
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-06-22
Updated: 2020-11-01
Packaged: 2021-03-04 00:21:46
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 6
Words: 8,305
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/24854518
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/ammstar11/pseuds/ammstar11
Summary: Will is a pretty opened minded person, he accepted most things in life and tried his best to understand whatever came hisway; but if you had told him that those stories of monsters and things that go bump in the night were real then he wouldhave given you a kind smile and walked away after wishing you a good day. He didn’t mean to be so skeptical but all thatfantasy stuff was meant for fairy tales and videogames or movies and cartoons, to say that the boogieman was real or thatthe dead could rise was just ridiculous.So imagine his utter shock when he lands right in the middle of one of those fairy tales.
Relationships: Nico di Angelo & Will Solace
Kudos: 1





	1. Have some fun for once

**Author's Note:**

> “Just because ONE very well-known vampire was allergic to garlic and had an extreme case of albinism on a hot day does NOT mean that these ‘weaknesses’ apply to EVERY vampire!”  
> As you can see I love prompts from Tumblr, this one had Solangelo written all over it so here we are!  
> Please do me a favor and don’t compare this to Twilight.

Will led a normal life; he went to school, worked part time, and helped around the house. He called it normal but most 

people would call it boring, his friends included. They were always telling Will that he needed more in his life, that he was 

missing out on what life had to offer because he was always doing what was expected of him and always playing it safe.

“Come on man, you need to learn to live life to its fullest!” Cecil said to him as they sat in Will’s dorm room, Cecil had come 

over claiming to be on a mission to save Will from himself seeing as how he was his best friend.

Will rolled his eyes as he went back to focusing on his textbook, he knew that Cecil meant well but he really needed to study 

for midterms right now.

But of course Cecil would not be ignored. “Seriously Will, you study so much that your head is going to overload with all that 

information and shutdown like an over-heated computer.”

Will still didn’t look up from his book but responded to his friend none the less. “Thank you for your concern Cecil but I 

really need to know this for the exam. Maybe we can get together after midterms and do something then.” He didn’t want to 

brush his friend off; he just needed to concentrate right now.

Cecil flopped down on Will’s bed and reached over and grabbed his pillow and lobbed it at the side of Will’s head.

“Hey! What the hell Cecil?” Will picked up the pillow and threw it back onto the bed next to his friend “What are you five? If I 

don’t pay attention or play with you you’re going to throw a tantrum, or my bedding?” he looked at his friend with a raised 

brow but Cecil was trying his best to look innocent and was skimming through one of the books Will’s sister had lent him 

that sat on the nightstand.

Cecil looked up at him like he had just noticed Will talking to him. “Oh sorry what? I was reading, did you say something?” he 

asked sweetly, and Will resisted the urge to groan.

“You should really work on your acting skills you know that?” he sighed and turned back to his textbook again.

“I didn’t know you were into vampires and the like, when did you get these books?” Cecil asked as he flipped through the 

book he still had in his hands.

“I didn’t, Kayla leant them to me because she really liked them but I haven’t had the time to get around to reading them yet.”

Cecil put the book back down on the nightstand. “Ah that makes sense.” He laid back on the bed and let out an exaggerated 

sigh, despite needing to improve on his acting skills Cecil was probably one of the most dramatic people Will knew, though 

sometimes he wondered how they had become such good friends in the first place.

Knowing he wasn’t going to get anymore studying done so long as his friend was present Will closed his textbook with the 

sheet he had been writing out important points on as the bookmark, and turned in his seat to face his ever dramatic friend. 

“Okay Cecil, you win. So what do you plan to do to ‘save me from myself’ exactly?”

As if his words had been electrically charged Cecil jumped to his feet like he had been shocked. “You mean it?” he asked 

happily and Will let out another sigh at his friends antics.

“Yeah Cecil, I mean it. So what are we going to do then?” Will was really hoping he wouldn’t regret his decision to give in 

when he saw the mischievous light that twinkled in his friend’s eyes.

“Well…”

Will cut him off immediately. “It can’t be anything illegal.” he said holding his hands up as if to ward off anything crazy that 

might be going through Cecil’s mind.

“Relax Will, it’s completely legal. I was just going to suggest we go to a club or bar so that you could lighten up and relax, 

you’re always so stressed.”

Well he wasn’t wrong but still bars and clubs have never really appealed to Will, Cecil on the other hand loved them.

Will locked eyes with his friend. “You aren’t just roping me along so that you have a DD are you?” Will asked suspiciously but 

Cecil shook his head.

“Nope, the place I had in mind isn’t that far from here and I don’t plan on getting drunk, just want to have fun. You know 

fun, that thing that seems to be missing from your life? We can shoot pool or something while we’re there.”

Will ignored the comment about fun being missing from his life. “As long as you aren’t planning on hustling anyone, 

remember nothing illegal.”

Again Cecil tried to look innocent. “Oh come now, would I do something like that?”

Will just gave him a drawl stare and deadpanned “Yes.”

Cecil rolled his eyes. “Fine cross my heart.” He made the motion of crossing his heart, something that he and Will had done 

since they were children and wanted to prove that they meant to keep their word.

  
“Good now I’ll believe you.” Will said as he went to grab his jacket and shoes so that they could go. “Alright let’s get going 

then.” Will said while sending out a silent prayer that this wasn’t a mistake or that he’d regret this later.  
Cecil followed him out of the dorm room and after locking the door they head out.


	2. Glad I came

Will didn’t know what he had been thinking giving in to Cecil like that, he had a lot to study before his exam and he didn’t feel anywhere near ready. So what was he doing here sitting at the bar while Cecil shot pool with some friends of his?

He had tried to get Will to join but Will wasn’t very good at pool and didn’t want to embarrass himself in front of everyone so he opted to just hang out at the bar and listen to the music. He didn’t drink so he just had coffee since he’d likely need the caffeine to keep him going once he got home anyway so he could stay up and cram some more.

He looked up when he heard Cecil let out a cheer as he managed to make a good shot, it always entertained Will how excited his friend got when he played pool. Will smiled and shook his head and was about to turn back when something caught his eye over towards the back of the room. Will did a double take and saw a cute guy being backed into a corner by three other guys.

Will didn’t like seeing people ganging up on someone and three to one was definitely not fair so he left his drink where it was and went over to see if he could stop the fight that was sure to breakout before it began. At least he might be able to distract the other three while the cute guy- scratch that, _hot guy_ escaped- as Will got closer he could see just how attractive the guy was, also how small he seemed compared to the other three and Will was even more indignant about the whole situation.

It was probably stupid of him to walk up to a group of likely hostile guys and basically challenge them but he couldn’t just stand by and let them start a fight with someone with such a clear disadvantage so being the big hearted idiot that he was Will walked up to the nearest guy to him and placed a hand on his shoulder to get his attention.

“Excuse me but if you guys are going to be starting trouble I’m going to have to ask you nicely to leave or I’ll get a bouncer over here to ask you and they probably won’t be so polite.” Yup he was an idiot but oh well, helping people was what he did.

The guy that he had spoken to turned around and snarled at him like a wild animal but he just shoved Will away as he and his buddies walked away. Will’s heart was racing and he couldn’t believe how easily that had worked, but he was happy that it did because he wasn’t sure how useful he would be in a fight and he didn’t even know where a bouncer was so he was glad the guy hadn’t called his bluff.

The hot guy was still standing with his back to the wall but he ignored Will as he watched the other three leave the club. Finally when they were out of sight he spoke up and _Oh my God what an accent!_ Will’s heart fluttered at the sound of the guy’s voice.

“You didn’t need to do that. I can take care of myself.” Oh man he had such deep dark eyes that Will couldn’t help but stare.

“Huh? Oh sorry, I just saw what looked like a fight about to start and wanted to stop it. I didn’t mean to offend you or anything, I just hate when people gang up on others, it’s not fair.”

The guy was looking at him as if trying to see if he was serious or not.

“Honest, I hate injustice and situations that are unfair like that, really.” He held his hands up in front of him to ward off any anger the guy might have for him having butted into his business like he had.

“Aren’t you a rare sort then? Most people wouldn’t bother getting involved in situations like that.”

Will ran his fingers through his hair. “Yeah I guess, my friends are always telling me that I’m an idiot for sticking my nose into other people’s business like that, and that I’m going to get myself into a lot of trouble one of these days.”

The hot guy let out a huff that might have been a laugh. “They’re probably right.”

Will really wanted to keep talking to this guy. “What about you, are you here with friends too?” but he shook his head.

“No, I’m a loner.”

That seemed kind of sad, Will couldn’t imagine not having any friends to go out with, though in his case he had been forced to go out with Cecil today so maybe he could understand the appeal of being alone, but still…

“Well if you’re here alone would you like me to buy you a drink or something?” his face heated up when he realized what he had just asked. “I mean I’m not trying to pick you up or anything, not that you’re not attractive, I mean oh God I’m probably making you really uncomfortable right now aren’t I? I am so sorry, I just thought it would be nice to keep talking to you, and you are alone and all and now I’m babbling I am so sorry…” now is face could rival lava with how hot it felt from the blush that covered it all the way to his roots and the tips of his ears.

But to his surprise the guy just laughed. “It’s fine, I don’t mind. Thanks for offering, and by the way you’re not so bad yourself.”

The smirk he gave Will coupled with those words probably could have happily sent him on to the next world and he wouldn’t have argued but spending more time with this guy seemed like a better option. “I’m Will by the way.” he said, his blush finally calming down and he smiled.

“Nico.”

Will’s smile grew “That’s a nice name, I don’t think I’ve heard it before.”

Nico shrugged. “It’s Italian, I was born in Italy.”

 _Ah that explained the accent._ “That’s cool, I’ve always wanted to travel.” He looked back at the bar. “So would you like that drink now?”

“Sounds like a plan.” Nico said as he and Will walked back to the bar and sat down. “So what would you like?” Will asked as Nico looked over the drink list, Will couldn’t help but notice when Nico flipped the drink list over and looked at the non-alcoholic choices.

“I usually get a Shirley Temple.” Nico said.

Will smiled again. “Alright a Shirley Temple it is then.” and he waved over the bartender to place the order and to get a refill on his coffee.

“Not much of a drinker either huh?” Nico noted and Will shook his head.

“No I can’t stand alcohol; I usually end up being the DD for my friends anyway so it works out for everyone I guess.”

Nico nodded. “Whatever works, works.”

There was another cheer from where Cecil was playing pool and Will looked over to see his friend doing a happy dance as he seemed to have won the game they were on.

Nico had followed his gaze. “Your friends you mentioned?”

Will nodded. “Yeah, the one dancing around like an idiot over there is my best friend Cecil. He dragged me here claiming to be saving me from my boring self.”

Nico raised an eyebrow at that. “Don’t get out much huh?”

Will laughed at that. “No I guess I don’t, though it seems to bother my friends more than it bothers me.” he smiled at Nico. “But if he hadn’t dragged me here then I wouldn’t have met you and we wouldn’t be sitting here talking.”

That smirk was back on Nico’s lips. “Well aren’t you a flirt?”

Will’s cheeks flamed up again. “I uh…”

Nico laughed. “Relax Will I’m just teasing you. This is nice; people usually just ignore me and act like I don’t exist unless they’re trying to pick a fight like those jerks earlier.”

Their drinks arrived and they sat and talked with each other for a while longer, Will was going to have to find some way to thank Cecil properly later for bringing him out today.


	3. Monsters lurk in back alleys

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Okay so there’s going to be swearing and violence in this chapter but I don’t know if it’s enough to raise the rating from T to M.

Will really enjoyed talking with Nico, he really needed to thank Cecil for making this possible, but that could wait.

Nico it seemed also attended university but he was taking history whereas Will was pre-med so their paths wouldn’t have crossed before. Will was going to have to pay more attention while on campus from now on he thought.

They had lost track of time but when Cecil came over to check on Will Nico asked for the time.

“Huh? Oh it’s 9:30.”

Nico got up from his seat a little hastily. “I should get going.”

Will felt a little disappointed that he couldn’t spend more time talking with Nico but he understood. He should really be heading back soon too and finish cramming. “Alright I guess I’ll see you again sometime?”

A smile tugged at Nico’s lips. “I hope so.”

Then another thought occurred to Will, “Oh yeah, could I get your number? Then maybe I could call or text you some time.”

This time Nico looked a little embarrassed. “I uh don’t have a phone.”

This time Will really did feel disappointed. “Oh okay, well hopefully I’ll see you around campus.”

Nico nodded, “Sure, see you around.” he said before heading out.

As Nico left Cecil smiled mischievously at Will. “So… I couldn’t help noticing you having oh what’s that word again? Oh yeah, Fun. So who was your new friend there?”

Will blushed from his friend’s teasing. “Shut up Cecil. And yes I did have a good time. His name’s Nico and he goes to the university as well.”

Cecil’s smile didn’t lessen any. “So do I get extra points for helping you meet someone?” he wagged his eyebrows and Will just rolled his eyes.

“Yes fine, I’ll treat you to a meal sometime for giving me the chance to meet a hot guy.”

Cecil did a small fist pump and whooped. “Yes!” then he looked at Will, “Oh and by the way, he comes here often. I knew he’d be your type so I dragged you here. And just so you know I like extra-large stuffed crust meat lover’s pizza with a side of hot wings on weekends!” he said as he headed back over to his pool game.

Will cringed wondering how his scrawny friend managed to pack away stuff like that and how he could even stomach it. But he did owe him and he didn’t mind paying up. Will checked the time on his phone again it was almost quarter to 10 and he still had a lot to study before he passed out tonight, so he went and said goodbye to Cecil and his friends before heading out of the club.

…

Once outside Will started heading back towards the dorms but not even a block down he stopped because he heard noises coming from the alley nearby. He wondered if maybe it could be a drunk or something but then he heard voices, he couldn’t make out any words but the voices sounded angry, was there a fight?

If it was gang related it would be better if he just kept walking, but as he drew closer to the entrance one voice caught his attention.

“I told you to just piss off already.”

That accent, he had just spent how long listening to that voice back in the bar? But what the heck was Nico doing in an alley down the street? Will’s heart started pounding away in his chest and he turned into the alley to see if there was anything he could do to help.

His heart nearly stopped when he saw them, it was the same three guys from earlier and once again Nico was backed into a corner. But this time Nico was covered in blood and looked like he had taken a real beating.

“What the hell?” the words were out before Will could stop them and all eyes turned to him, he swallowed past the lump that had formed in his throat and reached into his pocket for his phone so that he could make a show of calling the police but his hands were shaking.

“What do you want?” growled the same big ugly from before.

Will tried to sound brave. “You guys better leave him alone or I’ll call the cops!” Well at least he was a better actor than Cecil; he just prayed he was good enough to chase these thugs off twice in one night.

“Go ahead and try it Goldilocks.” Snarled big and ugly as he drew closer to Will.

_Gah his breath smelled horrible; did he floss with rotting guts or something? Gross._

Will wanted desperately to cover his nose before the noxious fumes this guy was spewing made him want to pass out, but he needed to stand strong long enough to at least draw these guys away from Nico so Will narrowed his eyes and glared at Big Ugly with what he hoped seemed like defiance. “Fine I will.”

He lifted the phone and heard it ring but as the dispatch operator picked up Big Ugly knocked it out of his hands and it smashed on the ground, and just because he was clearly an asshole Big Ugly crushed it even more under his booted foot.

“You know if you call 911 and something happens to the phone like that they are supposed to respond immediately right?” Will asked nonchalantly even though he was freaking out inside.

“Still leaves plenty of time to kill you both before they get here.” snarled Big Ugly as he grabbed Will by the throat and slammed him into the brick wall next to him.

 _Oh shit…_ Will’s head hit the bricks so hard he saw stars and pain exploded behind his eyes and he could feel his airways being crushed. _So much for helping…_

Will felt like a dark fog was rolling in and he knew that it wouldn’t be long before he passed out completely, but there on the edge of his vison he thought he saw something though he couldn’t be sure what it was, he just hoped Nico was able to get away. His lungs burned and his head was throbbing so much he couldn’t even think before everything went dark.


	4. Damn animals

Nico tended to spend his time at this bar because oddly enough he seemed to blend in here. Which was funny because he was still an outsider and was apart from the crowed, not a part of it. The young people that frequented this place didn’t bother him if he didn’t bother them so he liked to just hang back and observe them to pick up trends and speech patterns from them though he preferred to wear dark clothes and not say much to people so they just figure he was a goth or emo or whatever else and that was just fine by him.

Unfortunately for him, others didn’t seem so prone to leaving him alone despite his best efforts to avoid trouble.

“Look it’s a little parasite looking for a bite.”

And there was trouble now, _speak of the devil and he shall make himself known…_ Nico rolled his eyes and crossed his arms over his chest as he leaned against the wall he was standing near. “The only parasites around here are you beasts on the prowl, why don’t you get lost and leave decent people alone?”

The largest of the three that had approached him snarled. “What’s the matter leech? Miss a meal?” he pushed Nico back and his head hit the wall behind him.

“Just screw off already, I don’t need your crap right now.” Nico said irritated that they felt the need to invade his space.

The three of them stepped closer blocking his way on all sides and forcing him into a corner.

“You think you can just leave here leech?” one of them laughed and Nico shot him a death glare.

Why did this always happen? He wasn’t bothering anyone so why did crap like this always have to happen?

But before they could close in and do any real damage someone walked up behind the big guy in the middle and put a hand on his shoulder.

“Excuse me but if you guys are going to be starting trouble I’m going to have to ask you nicely to leave or I’ll get a bouncer over here to ask you and they probably won’t be so polite.”

 _Wow was this guy for real?_ Judging by the way his blood was rushing through his veins Nico could tell blondie was scared out of his mind when the beast he had spoken to turned and snarled at him, surprisingly enough though the three of them left without incident, that actually came as a shock.

But Nico didn’t like others sticking their nose into his business like that. “You didn’t need to do that. I can take care of myself.” He didn’t need some random guy to chase off brainless idiots for him. Blondie looked kind of dazed or something, but judging from his heartrate he wasn’t scared anymore, maybe a bit nervous still though.

“Huh? Oh sorry, I just saw what looked like a fight about to start and wanted to stop it. I didn’t mean to offend you or anything, I just hate when people gang up on others. It’s not fair.”

Nico was still trying to figure this guy out; most people would have ignored them even if it was a fight.

“Honest, I hate injustice and situations that are unfair like that, really.” he held his hands up in front of him as if to ward off any anger Nico might be feeling right now.

“Aren’t you a rare sort then. Most people wouldn’t bother getting involved in situations like that.” Nico was actually kind of impressed, though he wasn’t really up to admitting that just yet.

Blondie ran his fingers through his hair. “Yeah I guess, my friends are always telling me that I’m an idiot for sticking my nose into other people’s business like that and that I’m going get myself into a lot of trouble one of these days.”

 _No duh idiot._ Nico let out a huff “They’re probably right.” But it was a nice gesture considering they didn’t even know each other.

“What about you, are you here with friends too?”

Nico, caught off guard by the question shook his head. “No, I’m a loner.” Though he was starting to like talking to this guy.

“Well if you’re here alone would you like me to buy you a drink or something?” his face heated up when he seemed to realize the implications of what he had just asked. “I mean I’m not trying to pick you up or anything, not that you’re not attractive, I mean oh God I’m probably making you really uncomfortable right now aren’t I? I am so sorry, I just thought it would be nice to keep talking to you, and you are alone and all and now I’m babbling I am so sorry…” now he blushed all the way to his roots and the tips of his ears.

_Well he is pretty cute…_

Nico actually laughed. “It’s fine, I don’t mind. Thanks for offering, and by the way you’re not so bad yourself.” He gave Blondie a teasing smirk as he said that.

“I’m Will by the way.” Blondie said his blush finally calming down and he smiled.

“Nico.” He replied.

Will’s smile grew. “That’s a nice name; I don’t think I’ve heard it before.”

Nico shrugged. “It’s Italian, I was born in Italy.” _Long, long ago…_

“That’s cool, I’ve always wanted to travel.” Will said and then he looked back at the bar. “So would you like that drink now?”

“Sounds like a plan.” Nico said as he and Will walked back to the bar and sat down.

“So what would you like?” Will asked as Nico looked over the drink list.

Nico flipped the drink list over and looked at the non-alcoholic choices, alcohol thinned blood and tasted horrible, way too strong for his heightened senses. “I usually get a Shirley Temple.” Nico said deciding on a drink.

Will smiled again, Nico was starting to like that smile.

“Alright a Shirley Temple it is then.” Will waved over the bartender to place the order and to get a refill on his coffee.

“Not much of a drinker either huh?” Nico noted and Will shook his head.

“No I can’t stand alcohol; I usually end up being the DD for my friends anyway so it works out for everyone I guess.”

Nico nodded his understanding. “Whatever works, works.”

There was a cheer from where a group of people were playing pool and Will looked over to watch some guy doing a happy dance, he seemed to have won the game they were on, Nico had followed his gaze. “Your friends you mentioned?” he guessed and Will nodded.

“Yeah, the one dancing around like an idiot over there is my best friend Cecil; he dragged me here claiming to be saving me from my boring self.”

Nico raised an eyebrow at that. “Don’t get out much huh?”

Will laughed. “No I guess I don’t, though it seems to bother my friends more than it bothers me.” he smiled again. “But if he hadn’t dragged me here then I wouldn’t have met you and we wouldn’t be sitting here talking.”

Nico’s smirk was back on his lips. “Well aren’t you a flirt?”

Will’s cheeks flamed up again. “I uh…”

Nico laughed good-naturedly. “Relax Will I’m just teasing you. This is nice; people usually just ignore me and act like I don’t exist unless they’re trying to pick a fight like those jerks earlier.” he really was enjoying himself right now. He hadn’t realized just how much he had missed simple human interactions like this.

Their drinks arrived and they sat and talked with each other for a while longer until Will’s friend came by.

Nico knew it was getting late so he figured he might as well leave now so he asked for the time.

“Huh? Oh it’s 9:30.” Will told him as Nico got up from his seat, he’d been having fun but he really shouldn’t linger just in case. “I should get going.” Nico wondered if he had just imagined the disappointment in Will’s eyes.

“Alright I guess I’ll see you again sometime?”

A smile tugged at Nico’s lips. “I hope so.” He really did.

“Oh yeah, could I get your number? Then maybe I could call or text you some time.”

Nico didn’t really know what to do here. “I uh don’t have a phone.”

This time Will really did seem disappointed. “Oh okay, well hopefully I’ll see you around campus.”

Nico nodded feeling the same way. “Sure, see you around.” Funny before now he had never thought much about needing modern technology to get by but now he wished he had a stupid phone or knew how to text.

He headed out of the club, his mind full of thoughts of learning how to operate new age tech; but as he walked he picked up the same sent as in the bar, damn pack animals needed to learn when to back off.

He pretended he didn’t know they were there as he continued walking before ducking into a nearby alley to get out of sight. It was a dead end and he swore under his breath as he was forced into a corner for the second time that night.

“What happened leech? Didn’t get your food to go?” the voice grew closer and Nico turned around.

_Here we go…_


	5. The gloves are off now

“Don’t you animals have anything better to do with your time than stalking me? I already had a date tonight, I don’t need three more but thanks anyway.” But seriously why wouldn’t these guys leave him alone?

“Shut up leech, we know you’ve been moving into our territory recently.” growled the leader of the three.

“Okay what?” yeah now he was confused for sure.

“You heard us, we know you’ve been coming in and having your fill before taking off. Now it’s time to get you back for just doing what you want.”

“Hold it right there, what the hell are you idiots even talking about?”

This time it was the one to the right that spoke up. “You know what we’re talking about you damn blood sucker! Members of our pack have been attacked recently and drained of their blood so that means you’ve been on the hunt, so now we’re going to make you bleed in return!”

This was some kind of twisted joke right? There was no way he’d want to drink from these mangy mutts, besides he preferred to stay under the radar by going to the hospital for blood transfusions every month rather than having to find someone with healthy blood these days.

“Look you guys are making a mistake so let’s just drop things and all go home okay?” but try as he might Nico knew that they wouldn’t listen to him, they were dead set on placing the blame on him so he prepared for the fight that he couldn’t get out of. He felt his eyes change so that they could better track the movements of his opponents, his senses all went into overdrive in anticipation of the fight and he backed up more so that his back was to the corner and no one could get to it. It didn’t take long for them to strike.

…

 _Damn were those claws sharp…_ Nico had done his best to defend himself but he wasn’t in a situation where he could easily take down three opponents on his own and in addition to the claws, these guys had knives as if to add insult to injury, they hadn’t been kidding when they said that they were going to make him bleed.

But he was still innocent in this and he wasn’t going down without putting up a fight of his own, he sent out a perfectly placed kick and knocked one of them back and wiped some blood from his face as he glared at the other two while the third got back to his feet.

“I told you to just piss off already.” Nico gritted out.

Clearly they were hell bent of killing him because they were advancing once more, but everything stopped when out of nowhere a new voice made itself known.

“What the hell?” the new comer asked.

All eyes turned to him, it was the blond from the club, Will. Nico watched as he gulped nervously and reached into his pocket for his phone so that he could make a show of calling the police but his hands were shaking pretty clearly, though Nico had to admit that it was breve, stupid, but brave of him to try and help even if he didn’t realize what he had just walked into the middle of again...

“What do you want?” growled the leader of these mangy animals as he turned his focus to the powerless human standing just inside of the alleyway now.

“You guys better leave him alone or I’ll call the cops!”

Nico almost couldn’t believe this idiot, _does he really think that that would work on these three?_

“Go ahead and try it Goldilocks.” Snarled the leader as he stalked closer to Will.

Will narrowed his eyes and glared at the beast in front of him with probably his best attempt at what seemed like defiance in this situation. “Fine I will.” And he lifted the phone and Nico heard it ring from where he was but as the dispatch operator picked up the phone was knocked out of his hands and it smashed on the ground, and then the beast crushed it even more under his booted foot.

“You know if you call 911 and something happens to the phone like that they are supposed to respond immediately right?” Will asked nonchalantly and Nico was speechless.

“Still leaves plenty of time to kill you both before they get here.” snarled the leader as he grabbed Will by the throat and slammed him into the brick wall next to him.

 _That’s it, no more holding back!_ Now Nico was really pissed and he had no intention of letting these damn animals leave here without regretting starting shit with him tonight. As his anger rose he felt the shadows around him begin to close in on him like a comfortable blanket and his eyes changed from their normally dark color to a bright red and his fangs grew as well as his nails transforming into claws that rivaled those of these beasts, it wasn’t often that he let his full nature come out because it meant that he would have to feed all that much sooner but he was left with no choice now.

The beasts had stopped in their tracks as they were readying to kill Will and turned to face Nico, but the vicious snarls left their faces as they saw the true monster before them, the only way to describe him now would be demon, but he didn’t care because these mutts had pushed him passed his limits and needed to suffer the consequences, they wanted to fight a vampire? Fine he’d give them a fight that they wouldn’t forget even in the deepest depths of hell.

With speed that no living creature should possess he launched into action and without touching the ground once he had jumped from the spot he had been standing, he had propelled from one target to brick wall to next target taking them out with ease. He did as much damage as he could get away with to make it seem like he had put up a fight as an ordinary human and let them live but made sure that it would take time for them to heal.

He made quick work of them because he hated this form and he hated fighting, but more than just his stupidly long life was on the line and he had to hurry and finish this if he was going to help Will who still lay unconscious near the mouth of the alley. As if some greater power might actually be on his side for once he had managed to heal the worst of his wounds leaving only slight bruises and cuts that wouldn’t draw too much attention to him as he sought help for Will and just in time too.

In the distance he could hear the sound of sirens blaring as first responders raced to the scene, he went over and sat next to Will as his strength began to leave him, he was thankful more than ever for the medical alert bracelet he wore because his weakness would be assumed to be related to his **_Anemia_** rather than the outcome of a supernatural battle where he had over used his powers.

He leaned in closer to Will and thanked whatever powers that be that he was still breathing and that his heart was still beating, he wouldn’t be able to ever forgive himself if this stupidly heroic innocent human had been killed because he just couldn’t mind his own damn business.

Nico’s vision blurred as he stood up but he pressed against the wall as he forced his legs to carry him to the edge of the alley so that he could flag down help once it arrived. When the EMT’s got there Nico did his best to explain that he and his date had been jumped after leaving the club and while trying to call for help his date’s phone had been broken and that they had done all that they could to hold out until help arrived. He said that he had self-defence training (technically true) and had done what was necessary to get the other guys down so that they couldn’t come at them again.

Luckily for him they believed him and even let him ride in the same ambulance as Will as they drove to the hospital, Will was taken to the ICU while Nico was taken to get patched up so that he didn’t lose any more blood and once they were sure he was safe he would receive a blood transfusion. During his time in the hospital the police had also spoken with him to find out what had happened and he had recounted what he had told the EMT’s before, he said that the thugs had been harassing him in the bar but had backed down once Will had confronted them, he guess that they must have been waiting for him outside so that they could jump him then. He had told them that he had no idea why they would target him either, but he figured that it must have been some sort of gang initiation thing or whatever because he had never met them before. This seemed to work for the police because they left him alone after that.

It worked out to his advantage that he came to this hospital regularly for his transfusions because the doctors knew him. That was the beauty of modern medicine, he didn’t actually have to consume the blood he needed to sustain himself, all he needed was to come here with the pretence that he had a blood disorder and he would be good as new. Well it wasn’t all a lie; he did need this to live after all.

…

Once he was well enough the doctors let him see Will, he was still in pretty bad condition but he was stable now. Nico sat by his side for as long as he could to make sure that he was alright, he couldn’t help worrying about the stupid mortal but a part of him hoped that once he was well again that they could get together again sometime.

For the first time in an incredibly long time he had found someone that just drew his attention and that he couldn’t help but like, and they had been hurt because they were involved with him, and could remain a target from now on because of it.

 _Guilty by association huh?_ Nico was determined to keep Will safe from now on even if they never got any closer than tonight, he’d do what he could to keep him safe from the shadows.


	6. I'm okay

Will came awake to the sound of steady beeping, he scrunched his eyes closed to block out the light and tried to lift up his arm to cover his eyes but as he went to move it he felt a tug and opened his eyes so that he could turn his head and look over to see what was wrong. Will’s heart sped up a bit and so did the beeping which he realized was a heart monitor that he was hooked up to. The tug that he had felt was an I.V. in his arm and as he became more aware he realized that he was in a lot of pain and had some bandages on including some wrapped around his head.

Will tried to think as to why he was lying in a hospital bed when a nurse came to see why his heartrate had increased, upon seeing him conscious she seemed to let out a sigh of relief.

“Oh thank goodness, we all really worried about you.”

Will looked over at her and blinked a couple of time before asking the obvious question. “What happened?”

The nurse came over to check to make sure that everything was okay and answered him. “Your friend said that you had been jumped after leaving a bar, he said that you had tried calling 911 but your attackers had broken your phone before the call could make it through. You were in pretty rough shape when you got here.”

Will thought back to the alley and realized that she must have meant Nico when she said friend. “Um, and my friend? Is he okay?” Will had blacked out and had no idea what had become of the guy that he had only just met but he still felt great fear thinking of him being left alone to deal with those three creeps all on his own.

The nurse gave him a reassuring smile. “He’s fine, he needed a blood transfusion and he had some bruises and cuts but he came out of it pretty okay.”

Will couldn’t help clinging to the part about the blood transfusion. “Blood transfusion? Is he alright?”

“Oh he’s going to be fine, so don’t worry. He’s a regular here for his condition.” her face went red as she realised that she shouldn’t actually be telling someone this kind of information. “Sorry I tend to talk too much, but like I said he’ll be just fine. You on the other hand are going to need a lot of rest, you have a slight concussion, we’ve blocked some of the light out but if it’s still too much let us know, for now just get some rest.”

Will settled back down in the bed he was in and tried to let himself relax. He felt his eyes fall closed as he drifted back into sleep; he felt better knowing that Nico made it out okay.

…

When Will woke up next he was told that he had a couple of visitors. His sister Kayla and Cecil had shown up and were now in his room both looking worried. At the back of his mind Will wondered when he had been moved to a room but he ignored those thoughts in favor of focusing on his sister and best friend. “Hey.” he says as he tries to smile at them, but if he was trying to calm or reassure them clearly it hadn’t worked because Cecil shot to his feet right away.

“HEY?! You get jumped, beaten, knocked out and windup with a concussion and the first thing you have to say to us when you wake up is HEY?!” Will cringed at the volume and a bit at the truth in those words; they must have been really upset so of course his nonchalance wasn’t really welcome right now.

Cecil realizing that he was shouting lowered the decibels as he continued. “Sorry, I was just really freaked out. I couldn’t get a hold of you after you left and got worried after a while so I called Kayla and she said that she had just been called and told that you were in the freakin’ hospital!” he sat down as if all of his energy had gone.

“I felt like shit because I was the one who insisted that we go out and that we go to that bar. Stuff like that doesn’t happen around here so I thought it would be fine and you looked like you were having a good time flirting with that guy so I thought it was all good. I figured if you managed to hook up with someone you’d be able to enjoy life a little, I didn’t think you’d almost die because of it, dude I’m so sorry, I should have just left you to your boring life!” Once Cecil was done ranting he allowed himself to take deep breaths and calm down a bit.

“Like the chatterbox over here said, we were really worried about you, who would have guessed that boringly safe and dull Will Solace would go to a club, breakup a fight, hit on and flirt with some guy he’s never met and then end up getting jumped in some dark alley all in one night?” Kayla said as she recounted everything that she had been told about the events leading up to her brother being hospitalized.

Will could see that under the teasing light in her eyes there was real concern and he was glad that she was handling this so well, he knew that if their situations were reversed he’d be freaking out like it was the end of the world.

“I know, this was definitely not how I saw my night going, but Cecil, don’t go blaming yourself. It’s not like you could have known this was going to happen. Like you said this sort of thing doesn’t happen around here so there’s no way you could have guessed it was going to happen, besides it was my idea to get involved in the first place.” he closed his eyes because his head was starting to hurt again.

“What happened to your friend anyway?” Cecil asked once he was calmed down.

“I was told that he wasn’t hurt too badly so he was able to leave, but he’s got a medical condition so they had made sure that he was really okay before letting him leave. Why do you ask?” Will said.

“Well apparently someone else came to visit you before we got here and they were the ones to get you a room and are paying your bill, that’s what we were told when we asked about it anyway.” Cecil said and Will’s eyes shot open as he sputtered.

“WHAT?!” he wasn’t able to sit up but he still felt dizzy anyway and a wave of nausea swept over him.

“Yeah, I guess it’s a thank you for trying to help, as well as an apology for getting you involved, man when you pick ‘em you sure pick good.” Cecil said shaking his head in amazement.

Kayla swatted him on the arm. “Shut up. Anyway,” she said as she turned her focus back to her brother, “your new friend left you a gift as well.” she held a box up for him to see. It was a cellphone box and there was a note attached to it. “He left this at the desk for you, we were asked to bring it for you.”

Will just couldn’t wrap his mind around just how generous Nico had been, how could he possibly afford to pay for Will’s hospital bill and then go buy him a new phone to replace the one those creeps had broken? Was he rich or something? Sure they had flirted and Will had helped him but wasn’t this a little much?

“What does the note say?” he asked after licking his suddenly dry lips.

Kayla read the note to him. ” **Sorry you got dragged into this, you’re a good person and didn’t deserve this so let me try and pay you back for your kindness, I’ll see you around and the next time I’ll take you to dinner or something to apologise and thank you in person**.”

Will felt his jaw drop, Nico still wanted to pay him back? Wait did he just ask him out? Never mind that wasn’t important right now…

“Looks like you really made a good impression on him.” Kayla said with a smirk.

Will would have rolled his eyes but he felt like if he tried his eyes would fall out of his skull, he knew that they wouldn’t but still.

“So, he goes to the same university huh?” Kayla asked as she placed the gift back down on the bedside stand.

“Yeah, we talked about school for a while at the bar before he had to go.” Will said.

“So, besides this mess, are you going to thank me for possibly helping you find your soulmate?” Cecil asked while wiggling his eyebrows at Will who really wanted to roll his eyes now.

“Shut up, and yes, thank you Cecil for dragging me away from my _boring life_ and for _saving me from myself_.” Will said to his best friend, he was glad that Cecil wasn’t freaking out anymore.


End file.
